THE SsMOOTH 
would not be looked at if a hard-and-fast 
line were drawn over which no dog should 
win a prize. There are hundreds of 
Fox-terriers about quite as capable of 
doing their work as their ancestors ever 
were, and there is hardly a large kennel 
which has not from time to time furnished 
our leading packs with one or more dogs, 
and with gratifying results. It is, there- 
fore, a great pity that our leading ex- 
hibitors should often be the greatest delin- 
quents in showing dogs which they know in 
their hearts should be kept at home or 
drafted altogether, and it is 
deplorable that some of our 
oldest judges should by their 
awards encourage them. 
So much for the utility of 
the present breed. Now as to 
a comparison of its appear- 
ance with bygone genera- 
tions. I have no hesitation 
whatever in saying that if 
the old time worthies could 
come to life again they 
would look a sorry crew, 
and hold no chance what- 
ever with our average 
specimens ; while as to our 
first flight they are incom- 
parably ahead of them. It 
is true that far too many 
Fox-terriers are now bred, 
and one sees many indiffer- 
MR. 
LASSIE. 
ent ones; but the type is 
vastly improved, and with 
it, heads, shoulders, fronts, feet, and 
character. 
Before concluding this chapter it may 
not be out of place to say a few words as 
to the breeding and rearing of Fox-terriers, 
and in doing so I will presume I am address- 
ing those of my readers who are novices 
striving to compete with older hands. 
In the first place, mever breed from an 
animal whose pedigree is not authenticated 
beyond a shadow of a doubt; and remem- 
ber that while like may beget like, the in- 
evitable tendency is to throw back to 
former generations. The man who elects 
REDMOND’S 
DUSKY DALESMAN 
BY DARLEY DALE——DURHAM 
Photograph by Reveley, Wantage. 
FOX-TERRIER. 343 
to breed Fox-terriers must have the bumps 
of patience and hope very strongly developed, 
as if the tyro imagines that he has only 
to mate his bitch to one of the known prize- 
winning dogs of the day in order to pro- 
duce a champion, he had better try some 
other breed. Let him fix in his mind the 
ideal dog, and set to work by patient effort 
and in the face of many disappointments 
to produce it. It is not sufficient that, 
having acquired a bitch good in all points 
save in head, that he breeds her to the 
best-headed dog he can find. He must 
satisfy himself that the head 
is not a chance one, but is 
an inherited one, handed 
down from many genera- 
tions, good in this particu- 
lar, and consequently potent 
to reproduce its like. So in 
all other points that he 
wishes to reproduce. In 
the writer’s experience, little 
bitches with quality are the 
most successful. Those hav- 
ing masculine characteristics 
should be avoided, and the 
best results will be obtained 
from the first three litters, 
after which a bitch rarely 
breeds anything so good. 
See that your bitch is free 
from worms before she goes 
to the dog, then feed her 
well, and beyond a dose of 
castor oil some days before 
she is due to whelp, let Nature take its 
course. Dose your puppies well for worms 
at eight weeks old, give them practically 
as much as they will eat, and unlimited 
exercise. Avoid the various advertised 
nostrums, and rely rather on the friendly 
advice of some fancier or your veterinary 
surgeon. 
Take your hobby seriously, and you will 
be amply repaid, even if success does not 
always crown your efforts, as while the 
breeding of most animals is a fascinating 
pursuit, that of the Fox-terrier presents 
many varying delights. 
